145. The Calm Before the Storm (End)
145. The Calm Before the Storm (End)
"Yohan, Yohan! I heard from Karin—"
"Karin?"
"She's a new friend I made! She said she's from a rural village in the western part of the Empire, and her dream is to become a civil servant, buy a nice house in the capital, and live with her family!"
So that crazed-puppy energy of hers had finally helped her make some friends. I cut my pork cutlet into bite-sized pieces, popped one into my mouth, and quietly listened to Millia talk.
"So, what was the rumor?"
"Well, Karin and Sion said—"
"Who's Sion?"
Why did the number of people keep growing?
"Sion is another new friend! They came to study so they could inherit the viscounty as their family's heir!"
"...Got it. Go on."
"Uh, how far did I get?"
"You've only said your friends' names."
"Who?"
"Sion and Karin."
"Oh! So Sion and Karin told me! They said there's something incredible deep inside the library!"
...The rumor was spreading already? The information hit me out of nowhere, and I barely swallowed the cutlet that nearly flew from my mouth before staring at Millia. Perhaps delighted simply to share school gossip with me, she continued with sparkling eyes.
"It's a rumor that's been going around for a long time, that there's a secret archive hidden deep inside the library, and there's an amazing item in there! They say if you get that item, it'll grant your wish!"
"An item that grants wishes? That sounds incredible."
Karina, who had been dipping soft bread into her soup, expressed admiration at the rumor Millia had brought. She was still a young woman, and the story had clearly piqued her interest.
"I-I've heard it too... B-But there's no w-way something like that could..."
"But where there's smoke, there's fire! There must be something behind the rumor, right?"
She wasn't entirely wrong. A rumor normally needed some plausible basis to begin. As Millia said, the rumor about treasure hidden in the library did have a solid foundation.
Because that secret archive really did exist within the library, and just as the rumor claimed, it contained an item that could grant wishes. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that the rumor had already spread.
Normally, it wouldn't have started spreading in earnest for another fifteen days.
This was within the margin of error, but I couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.
There was such a thing as the butterfly effect.
A butterfly's wings could send a nuclear bomb flying—or was it a hurricane? A tornado? Whatever it was, there was a saying like that. This matter bothered me too much to ignore.
...I needed to investigate personally, but asking around myself would be awkward.
How was I supposed to handle it...?
"Yohan, Yohan! You're good at digging, Yohan, so aren't you good at finding that kind of thing too? Let's go look for it together!"
"Forget it."
"Tch."
I shot down Millia's suggestion in one stroke. Of course, for me, finding hidden dungeons or spaces was a piece of cake, but I had no intention of looking for it.
...Since I'd already built a secret passage leading into the secret archive in the first place.
"Millia, rumors are best enjoyed as gossip. Digging into them often reveals a disappointing truth."
"Really?"
"Yes."
At Karina's firm reply, Millia nodded without hiding her disappointment. It was rather adorable how readily she listened when Karina, who doted on her like an older sister, admonished her.
"Karina's right. Rumors are only fun while they're gossip, so it's better not to go looking for the truth."
Among sociable people, rumors worked just as Karina had said. There was no need to investigate whether they were true, even when they actually were. I placed a piece of my cutlet on Millia's plate and spoke.
"Given that you keep mentioning your friends' names, it seems you've made a lot of them."
"Yeah! Sion, Karin, Lize, Leon, Sena..."
Millia did not finish listing her friends until the count reached double digits. Going by the number alone, she seemed to have befriended her entire cohort in the department.
"...You didn't just list random names, did you?"
"I didn't! They're my friends!"
At Viola's remark, Millia puffed out her cheeks and protested as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. But if you told someone you'd become friends with every kid in your department, that was the only reaction you were going to get.
Only a week had passed since the second semester began.
"I've gotten close with the kids in the General Studies Department, so I'm going to make friends in the other departments too!"
"Sure. Give it your best shot."
I didn't know if she'd really manage to reach a hundred, but I supported Millia's choice to enjoy her youth to the fullest. She was a kid with a horrifically dark past, wasn't she? If she wanted to be happy, I had no reason to stop her. Though, of course, I'd step in if it looked dangerous.
"Yohan, can I have one more piece? Heehee."
I gladly placed another piece of cutlet onto Millia's plate.
--------------------------
"Yaaawn... Mister, I'm heading to bed too."
"All right. Sleep well."
Maybe it was time for me to sleep.
I wanted to work a little more, but the sun would be up in a few hours, and I had the duty of preparing for Karina's escort early in the morning. I finished cleaning up the now-quiet workshop and locked the door tightly. It wouldn't open again until tomorrow evening.
I slung my shovel onto my back and headed briskly toward the main building of Dawn Hall.
Perhaps because of the late hour, I could see almost no lights in Dawn Hall. Light sources in this world were rather limited, so that was only to be expected. I walked through the silent corridors, encountering no one but the occasional maid, until I reached my room.
[Contractor. Make sure you didn't enter the wrong room.]
"Taaasty... heehee..."
"...Why is she here?"
I looked down at Millia, who had commandeered my bed and was off in dreamland. Sleeping soundly like that, she looked just like a puppy that had stolen its owner's spot. I placed my shovel on the table and pondered for a moment.
Should I wake her up?
"...I'd better take her to her room."
My conclusion leaned toward not waking her. Whatever dream she was having, Millia's face looked happy. I didn't want to deliberately shatter that happy look on her face.
I quietly picked up the red-haired Dullahan. Millia, asleep in someone else's bed, was alarmingly light.
"Mmph..."
Did she instinctively know she was being carried? Millia wrapped her arms around my neck as if determined not to fall. She and I ended up fully pressed together quite naturally. I walked down the hallway, oddly aware of a soft, plush sensation.
My footsteps were nearly silent.
That was because a carpet was laid along the corridor of Dawn Hall, as befitting a mansion where distinguished figures resided. Stepping across the carpet, which greedily devoured all sound, I arrived in front of Millia's room. Looking at Millia, who showed no sign of letting go, I opened my mouth.
"Rue. Open the door for me, will you?"
[A Contractor asking a Grimoire to open a door...]
She was going to help me anyway, so what was with the commentary. I chuckled as I watched a tentacle wrap itself around the doorknob. It had been almost two months since I'd first met Rue. Realizing that so much time had already passed gave me an odd feeling.
"...Now that I think about it, it's been a while since I've been inside Millia's room."
Usually, Millia came to find me; I rarely went to her. I pried her off me despite her efforts to cling, laid her on the bed, and turned away. I had just begun the final task of the night—washing up quickly and going to sleep—when...
"Yohan, Karina... don't go... I don't wanna be alone..."
I turned a full 180 degrees back around. It was only sleep-talking, but I had never heard such a pitiful voice from Millia. I sat before her and took the hand she was waving around as though searching for something.
"...I'm not going anywhere, so don't worry."
At that rate, there would be no going to sleep. I sighed as I looked down at Millia hugging my arm. The soft sensation against it made me uncomfortable, and her utterly defenseless state only made my head ache.
She would need to stop acting so childishly soon...
"...I give up."
This was closer to being a problem I should ask Karina about, not handle myself. It was a somewhat awkward subject for me to bring up.
I'd planned to lie down and think about the library, but that plan seemed ruined. It was difficult to continue thinking while pinned like this.
I leaned against the bed, sat down, and closed my eyes. Fortunately or unfortunately, a plush carpet covered the floor, so it wasn't the worst place to sleep. Compared with the uninhabited island, this much discomfort was practically heaven.
...Still, I should take off her shoes at least.
I wouldn't stand for sleeping with shoes on just because this was a Western-style place.
I stretched out my arm and pulled them off.
Maybe I could sleep now.
"Hee-hee..."
I closed my eyes. Now, there was only darkness.
My body, steeped in exhaustion, dragged my consciousness down into the darkness in an instant.